Recipe Review from 9/29/2019

An insane week. Absolutely insane. I admittedly crammed too much in, and in so rushing, some of my recipes didn't quite turn out as planned. I also hosted a small retirement luncheon during a work meeting, which at the time I proposed the plan, seemed like a good idea. In hindsight, not the best week with everything else.  It went well and was well received.

I feel like I'm missing one new recipe to review, but I don't have my grocery list handy so I may need to come back and ad.

And hopefully I'll have some adventures to write about next week!

The Meal Plan (such as it was)
Saturday - Chunky Vegetable Stew
Sunday - Skillet BBQ Pizza
Monday - leftover soup
Tuesday - leftovers soup
Wednesday - leftovers
Thursday - Oregon!

Retirement luncheon: Brats, Slow Cooked baked beans (Cooks Country), Broccoli and Apple Salad, Naniboujou Chocolate Tort Cake

Slow Cooker Vegetable Stew (Eating Well, September 2019) vegetarian/vegan options
This has the potential to be so much better.

Point one - if you are going to use whole plum tomatoes, use San Marzano for extra flavor. I used Hunts and felt that they didn't smoosh right, tasted basically like canned tomatoes

Point two - skip the plum tomatoes and used diced. I really didn't care for these large chunks of plum tomatoes with their little hard stem spots. Diced would have been so much better.

Point three - Where in the heck is Eating Well based, because I'm guessing most of the country is NOT going to be able to find Italian beans in their freezer section.

And this next bit was on me, I tried to be expedient and use some dried beans from our garden last year (properly stored in a glass container in the basement). I did brine/pre-soak my beans, but I didn't finish pre-cooking. I *thought* they were good enough to finish in the soup, but, no. I suspect with a straight tomato base it was too much acid. I got crunchy beans. I tried picking them out and cooking separately. Nope. Still crunchy. Beans were fed to chickens. I bought a can of cannellini and tossed in.

I also have come to realize my Instant Pot slow cooker just doesn't get up to temp like my regular slow cooker. The potatoes were not cooked after 8 hours, and they were small potatoes. I pulled those out and finished cooking on the stove, then quartered and added back into the soup.

So, recommended with some reservations and suggested modifications.

1 (28 ounce) can whole plum tomatoes

photo from eatingwell.com

1 (15 ounce) can whole plum tomatoes
1 (15 ounce) can cannellini beans, rinsed
1½ cups frozen cut Italian (Romano) beans (See Tip)&
(I used regular frozen green beans)

12 ounces baby yellow potatoes (wouldn't hurt to quarter)
1 cup chopped onion
2 teaspoons dried oregano
1 teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon ground pepper
½ teaspoon crushed red pepper, plus more for serving
1 cup low-sodium no-chicken broth or vegetable broth
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
3 cloves garlic, minced
Shaved Parmesan cheese for garnish

Fresh Garlic Croutons (I skipped)
1 clove garlic, chopped
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
½ teaspoon Italian seasoning
3 cups cubed (1-inch) crusty whole-grain bread


Place tomatoes and their juice in a 4- to 7-quart slow cooker and crush them with your hands or a potato masher. Add cannellini beans, frozen beans, potatoes, onion, oregano, salt, pepper and crushed red pepper. Stir in broth and cover. Cook on Low for 8 hours or High for 4 hours.

To prepare croutons: About 30 minutes before serving, preheat oven to 400°F. Mash chopped garlic into a paste with a fork or the side of a chef's knife. Transfer to a medium bowl and stir in 2 tablespoons oil and Italian seasoning. Add bread and toss to coat. Transfer to a rimmed baking sheet. Bake until golden, 12 to 15 minutes.

Just before serving, heat 1 tablespoon oil in a small skillet over medium heat. Add minced garlic and cook, stirring, until just golden, about 1 minute. Stir the garlic and oil into the slow cooker. Divide the stew among 6 bowls and top with the croutons. Serve with more crushed red pepper and Parmesan, if desired.


Recipe Tip: Long, flat Italian (Romano) beans range in color from green to purple—or even speckled. Find them at farmers' markets from summer through fall. You can also pick them up in the frozen aisle. They're from the same family as garden-variety green beans and have a similar grassy flavor, but are more substantial and meaty.


Skillet BBQ Pizza (Eating Well, Jan/Feb 2019)
If you don't have a 12" or 14" cast iron skillet, make like a regular pizza.   I attempted this in a 10" skillet and, while not a colossal failure, it would have been soooo much better made in the traditional way.  And the frustrating part was, my gut was telling me to make like a traditional pizza.  But I was rushing and not thinking. 

However, the flavor was good, the crust released from the skillet, and I would make this again.  Just not in the cast iron skillet.   Recommended with reservations.

photo from eatingwell.com

12 ounces prepared whole-wheat pizza dough
3 tablespoons mayonnaise
1 teaspoon white-wine vinegar
1 teaspoon sugar
1 medium clove garlic, grated
½ teaspoon prepared horseradish
¼ teaspoon ground pepper
¼ cup tomato sauce
6 ounces shredded cooked chicken breast
½ cup sliced red onion
⅓ cup shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese
¼ cup shredded Monterey Jack cheese
¼ cup thinly sliced scallions


Place a large cast-iron skillet in the oven; preheat to 500°F. Form dough into a tight ball; place on a lightly floured work surface and cover with a clean towel. Let come to room temperature, about 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, whisk mayonnaise, vinegar, sugar, garlic, horseradish and pepper in a small bowl. Roll the dough into a 14-inch circle. Carefully fit into the hot pan, pressing a little up the sides. Bake until slightly crispy, about 5 minutes.

Spread tomato sauce over the crust and sprinkle with chicken, onion, mozzarella and Monterey Jack. Bake until the cheese is melted and bubbling and the crust is crispy on the bottom, about 5 minutes. Let the pizza cool for 3 minutes. Drizzle the reserved BBQ sauce on top and sprinkle with scallions. Cut into 4 slices and serve immediately.